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Hey there, children of the atom! As you’re all well aware, the next booster set release of HeroClix is Marvel Comics’ Wolverine and the X-Men. Already one of the most highly-anticipated expansions of all time, “WatXM” promises Blue and Gold X-Men teams, Brotherhood of Mutants, Excalibur, Shi’ar Imperial Guard, modern X-Factor, etc., and the previews thus far have not disappointed eager fans one bit. At Comic-Con last month we got to see even more figures from this set on display at the NECA and Diamond booths, but we’ve got something really special for you today. Direct from WizKids we’re taking a look at a fresh brick of Wolverine & the X-Men, eight boosters and one super booster full of mutant clix goodness. And, we’ve got some video so you can see the unboxing process (we also gave the figures the usual photo treatment - see the full gallery HERE). Without further ado, check out the unboxing videos!

THE BRICK: As you can see, a brick of Wolverine & the X-Men comes in the same configuration we’re used to with super booster sets: eight standard five-figure boosters and one super booster containing a team base (or bases?). The booster art is classic Jim Lee X-Men #1 and looks awesome, stretching across three standard boosters as well as the super. You can see that on both size boosters there’s an advertisement for the Fear Itself tournament series, as well as digital images of WatXM’s team bases and prize support figures.

BREAKDOWN: As we’ve seen from the previews thus far, this set is bringing us tons of classic and modern X-related heroes and villains, both remakes of characters we’ve seen in HeroClix before as well as newcomers to the game. This brick (not necessarily indicative of the “standard”) contained:

17 Commons: 11 unique figures, 6 dupes

14 Uncommons: 12 unique figures, 2 dupes

7 Rares: all unique, no dupes

2 Super rares: both unique, no dupes

Super booster: 1 team base

THE FIGURES: We already know that there are chase figures in this set (WizKids previewed the Phoenix Five Cyclops), so your brick should include at least what you’ve seen here and maybe more rare figures. It’s interesting that both of my super rares (Phoenix of Excalibur and Jubilee from the Blue Strike Force) are team base figures; it would be nice if those were relatively more common so that people can complete their teams. Even better, the team base I got (X-Men: Gold Strike Force) was easily completed with the three other figures in the brick; a common, uncommon, and rare meant I didn’t need to chase down a super rare for this one. My brick also had one Prime figure, the uncommon Cerise who’s the alternate of the standard Deathbird.

As you can see in the video and the photos, the new Wolverine & the X-Men figures look great. There are tons of classic poses pulled right off the pages of comics, and a huge variety of brightly colored and dark costumes. Lots of figures like Storm, Layla Miller, and Iceman include translucent parts for flying, energy effects, or the like, and metallic paint looks great on people like Deathlok, Silver Samurai, and of course Colossus.

Painting is very good across the board, with detailed costumes/uniforms, facial expressions, and a solid push toward the more fully realized eyes that we’ve seen especially since Fear Itself. Some of my favorite figures here include the awesomely ‘80’s Dazzler, prim, proper, and evil White King, shredded/shredding Husk, super creepy Shadow King, and of course the always cool Archangel. I should also note that the Gold Strike Force team base is incredible, a complete diorama setting that looks amazing with all of the figures plugged in and ready for battle.

Alright, you’ve heard and seen me talk about the brick... so how about some dials? First up is the uncommon Prime figure Cerise, a psionic Shi’ar mutant who joined Excalibur! The unique alien warrior floats in the air on a clear flying effect, one leg straight down and the other pulled up in a classic heroic pose. With one arm outstretched Cerise raises the other before her to summon her red energy, all the while staring serenely from beneath her Shi’ar headdress. In the game she’s a 60 point figure with the Police team ability, a 5 range with one target, and Flight. Her trait, “Red Solid Light Constructs,” lets you assign one of three powers to Cerise each turn: Blades/Claws/Fangs, Empower, or Energy Shield/Deflection.

Just like her trait, her powers lend themselves to both ranged and close combat depending on what you need, and solid numbers back up whatever powers you decide to use. She begins with two clicks of Running Shot, Psychic Blast, Combat Reflexes, and Enhancement before switching to close range with Charge and slowly losing the other powers. Naturally, Cerise has the keywords Excalibur, Police, Shi’ar, Soldier, and Warrior.

We’re also proud to share with you the dial for the X-Men: Gold Strike Force team base! Check out the photos of this bad boy to see it in all its glory, the interior of a wrecked building with all manner of debris and destruction out of which come the X-Men. The team has six members, three of whom come packaged with the base in the super booster (Storm, Iceman, Archangel).

The base can be played at three different point levels (170, 270, and 470 - before adding figures) and has the team symbol, Indomitable, the X-Men team ability, an 8 range with one target, and Improved Movement: Hindering Terrain. It shares with the Blue team the “X-Cutioner’s Song” trait that lets you remove a figure from it and from the game in order to succeed at your next attack, as well as another amazing trait that let’s you “psychically” recruit an opposing figure you would otherwise KO once per game!

The Gold Strike Force has great stats and an excellent power set starting with the always popular Hypersonic Speed and Impervious (with 11/12/18/6 showing) on its highest starting cost. Movement sees a steady progression from HSS through Running Shot, Mind Control, and finally Charge. The first and third of those come with vanilla attack slots, but the Running Shot clicks have Pulse Wave and the Charge clicks have Poison. Defenses bounce between Impervious, Invulnerability, and Invincible before petering out with Toughness and a couple bare clicks at the end, and there are three-click sections of Perplex, Outwit, and Ranged Combat Expert. As with all team bases the Gold Strike Force has an Asset Dial offering it even more benefits depending on which figures are attached; these range from Archangel’s speed boost and Sidestep to Bishop’s Steal Energy, Storm’s Energy Explosion and three targets, Iceman’s Plasticity and Incapacitate, and more. Finally, the Asset Dial has a “1” symbol that lets the team bounce back from a critical miss and get right back in the action!

Pre-orders have been incredible brisk for this set, so make sure your local comic book or game store has stock coming in when Wolverine & the X-Men lands later this month. You can go to HeroClix.com for more information on this set as well as a store locator.